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Author: fryahyavi

I'm an artist/designer. And a cook. I guess. I love sharing my recipes with others and discovering new recipes. I try to stick to a Paleo diet as much as I can (I call it the Paleo-ish diet)...I say whatever a lot...aaand thanks for stopping by and please let me know if you try any of my recipes and how they turn out!

It’s about time I post this recipe. I must have made these meatballs about 4 times in the past month alone. My sister made these Aromatic Lamb Meatballs by Nigella Lawson while I was visiting her one day and they were the bomb. So, of course, I decided to change up the recipe and make my own Paleo version with an optional side of dairy goodness. This whole meal pictured above took me about 1 hour and 15 minutes to make, veggies, dip, and all included. If it was just the dip and meatballs it would have taken me under an hour. I served it with cooked frozen spinach (quick and cheap) mixed with grass-fed butter, s&p. And asparagus that was on sale at Weis, rubbed in oil, granulated garlic, s&p, then broiled on high for 8-10 minutes.

Switching gears here, I’m going to share a short, sweet, and random story. I recently went to one of my best friends birthday dinners and one of the ladies in the dinner group told me she’s a fan of my food blog and asked about how I got into the Paleo diet, how I got into cooking, and so on. Let me just say, I LOVE when anyone asks me this. I will save the whole story of how I started the Paleo diet for another post. But I must say, instances like this remind me of why I started this blog and why I’m sharing my recipes. So, this is a big thank you to that person. It’s a great motivation to keep posting and keep up with this blog. Thank you! 🙂

Ingredients:

Makes about 15-17, 1.5 inch meatballs

1lb ground lamb

1/4 cup finely diced yellow onion

3 tablespoons almond flour (optional)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

Yogurt Dip:

2% or whole Fage Greek Yogurt-Whole is best

lemon juice

fresh dill, chopped

Granulated garlic

salt & pepper

*all of these ingredients don’t have measurements because I taste as I add them until I get the right balance. I advise starting by adding 1/2 teaspoon of s&p and garlic, 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of chopped dill. Then taste and add more of each as you feel it needs. Taste as you go, only add a little at a time. I have extra pics below to give a better idea of what the final dip looked like.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Combine all meatball ingredients in a bowl. Mix well. Form mixture into 1.5 inch balls (about the size of golf balls) The mixture will be pretty sticky.

2. Bake meatballs for 25-28 minutes, or until no longer pink in the middle.

3. While the meatballs cook, make your dip. Grab your container of Fage (I had a medium size tub, refer to pics below) and mix it up with a spoon until smooth. Add salt, pepper, garlic, lemon juice, and chopped dill. Mix well, taste, add whatever you think it needs. Only add a little at a time.

4. Serve with the dip and some broiled veggies or chopped spinach and enjoy!

Gosh, Sorry I haven’t posted for a long time. Been busy testing new, easy, Paleo recipes and applying for jobs like crazy. One of these quick new recipes I have discovered is chia pudding. I can’t stress it enough, this recipe is so easy! The first time I made chia pudding, I was afraid I wouldn’t like it because I hated tapioca pudding. But turns out, I love it! Chia seeds don’t have all of the Omega fatty acids you need/should have in your diet, but it does contain one called ALA that’s good for you. Google it and try it out this recipe!

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl, adding the chia seeds last. Set the timer for 20 minutes and stir or whisk the mixture on and off. Be sure to taste the mixture to make sure you sweetened it to your liking. Add more honey if you want. Wait a couple minutes, stir again, wait another minute, stir again…When the 20 minutes of stirring are up, you’ll finally see the mixture become more like a pudding consistency. Pour mixture into a jar, or tightly sealed container. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Top with fruit or granola and enjoy!

*I quadrupled this recipe and it worked out really well. I save glass jars to store the pudding in. The pudding can also last a long time in the fridge (over a week).

OMG these are delicious. I can see why they’re from a blog called PaleOMG. Seriously, her recipes are amazing. I love messing around with them and giving them my own personal cooking touches, adding things here and there. She actually liked this photo on my Instagram yesterday! Yeeaaah I’m such a geek, but I’m a huge fan of hers, so I was really excited about it.

The best part about these bars?….I doubled the original recipe and it cost me $5. Yes, $5 for 16 bars the size of the palm of my hand, homemade, and healthy! But I have to add, I only needed three more ingredients (a lemon, more frozen berries, and pumpkin puree) to make these. This may seem like a huge ingredients list, but if you’re a regular Paleo/low carb dieter, you probably have coconut flour, maple syrup, honey, nuts, and basic spices already in your pantry. Also, I already had some frozen berries in my freezer. I love keeping frozen berries as back up because I’m a supporter in trying to eat what’s in season. The berries I like to eat aren’t usually available during the winter or else they’re probably shipped from outside of the country, or they’re probably genetically modified or something…I don’t know…I think eating what’s in season is just a nice habit to get into. Think about it, google around. You can google what produce is in season and when and post the list to your fridge. I’m no expert on this sort of thing, but my sister is (almost) a certified nutritionist and I get a lot of advice about food from her.

On a totally random note…I saw Alton Brown LIVE! In Baltimore, last Saturday. I was elated! I have a pretty great guy, getting me such a great gift for Valentines Day. The man knows me so well. I wish I was half as good as buying gifts for people as he is….

If you don’t know who Alton Brown is….*siggghhhh*…….

Yields two 8×8 inch baking dishes. Feel free to half the recipe and make one dish.

4 cups frozen mixed berries (thawed) or fresh berries. You could use just blueberries, cherries…get creative

4-5 tablespoons honey

4 tablespoons unsalted butter or coconut butter

Zest of one lemon

Juice of one lemon

4 tablespoons coconut flour

Topping:

1/2-1 cup of any nuts you like or have lying around. I used raw almonds (banged it up in a zip loc bag using a butter knife handle), macadamia nuts, and walnuts. Could add shredded coconut to that if you want to. Again, get creative!

1/2-1 teaspoon sesame seeds. Add how ever much you like, really.

1-2 tablespoons of honey (depending on the amount of nuts you’re using)

generous sprinkle of cinnamon

pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease two 8×8 baking dishes with butter or coconut oil. Then, line the bottom with parchment paper. You want one, long 8×8 strip, so the edges hang over two sides. This allows you to take the bars out more easily once cooked and cooled.

4. In a separate and smaller bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients of the pumpkin muffin part- flour, spices, baking powder, and baking soda. Then add to the wet ingredients in the large bowl and mix it all together until well combined.

5. Divide the batter among the two greased baking dishes, pouring it into the bottom of each and spreading it out evenly with a spatula. Then pop that in the oven for 30-35 minutes. You will know it’s cooked all the way through if you poke the center with a toothpick/skewer and it comes out clean.

6. While that’s cooking, combine the thawed out berries, lemon juice, lemon zest, butter, and honey in a medium sized sauce pan over medium heat. If you have fresh berries, you’ll know they’re done when the blueberries start to burst. If you have frozen berries, you want the fruit to be cooked to the point where you can easily squish the berries with a spoon/spatula. Then add the coconut flour and stir until well incorporated. Set aside for 5-10 minutes to cool.

7. Once the muffin part has finished cooking, divide the fruit mixture among both dishes and spread out evenly again with the spatula.

8. Combine all of the ingredients for the topping in a small bowl and sprinkle/crumble it on the top of the bars.

9. Put them back in the oven for 15 minutes. Let it cool for at least 15 minutes before attempting to remove the bars from the pan, moving it to a cooling rack.

10. Refrigerate the bars, uncovered on plates for a half hour to one hour. After that it will be much easier to cut into rectangles. Keep leftovers refrigerated.

My sister texted me yesterday how to make this drink. I made it this morning and now I have my new favorite morning caffeine kick (Besides coffee…No one could ever replace you, coffee) It’s like having Starbucks at home. Super easy, try it out!

It’s been almost a week since I last posted a recipe. We had this big snow storm and our roof ended up leaking through to our ceiling 😦 Since I have to be here while it’s being repaired today, I should post a recipe. I wanted to make several servings of something really easy, so what’s easier (and cheaper) than spaghetti sauce? The vegetables in this recipe can be cooked in a different order than I do in my directions. Some like to saute their veggies separately. Also, the order/time will depend on what vegetables you use. I used mushrooms in this one and I didn’t saute them separately because I like my mushrooms tougher than most. I like to bite into a mushroom, not cook it until it’s flimsy. That’s just a personal preference. There are so many possibilities with this sauce. You can add several diced peppers, add broiled broccoli, add double the mushrooms, add fresh basil, add riced cauliflower…you could even use turkey or italian sausage rather than beef, or all three! It’s a great way to use up whatever you have leftover in your fridge and not let good ingredients go to waste. So, here we go!

Ingredients:

1 14 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

1 lb ground beef, or turkey, or italian sausage

1/2-1 28 oz can tomato sauce (depending on what texture you want your sauce to have)

For the ‘pasta’ either use spaghetti squash (look at buffalo chicken pasta recipe for instructions) or spiralized zucchini and/or squash like in my photo. I microwave the spirals, covered for 1 minute before serving.

Directions:

1. In a large pot or sauce pan, saute garlic and onion in the olive oil for a few minutes over medium/medium-high heat. Once the onions are translucent, add the ground beef and cook until browned, chopping into chunks and stirring here and there while it cooks.

2.Once it’s browned, add your diced peppers and sliced mushrooms and spices. Saute until softened. Add some more olive oil if you think it needs it.

3. Now it’s time to add your tomatoes. Start by adding the diced, drained tomatoes, half of the tomato sauce, and the half jar of pasta sauce. Then add the honey. Make sure it’s all well combined and taste it. If it is too sweet, add more salt. If it’s too acidic/salty add more honey to balance it. If you want more thickness, add tomato paste. If it’s too chunky and you prefer it to be more runny, add the rest of the tomato sauce. Always taste your food!

One thing I really, really missed when I started the Paleo diet were Reubens. I could eat them all day, every day. While on this diet I would only have a Reuben once or twice a year. Now, I have finally found a way I can eat them without the carb and grain loaded bread. Truly amazing. This was so much fun to experiment with and so easy to make. If you’re strict Paleo, Health Bent has a thousand island dressing recipe with only 5 ingredients. Also, you can substitute the heavy cream with full fat coconut milk in my recipe. Always use full fat cream, yogurt, cheese, etc. No point getting low-fat. It tastes worse in recipes, it’s usually higher in carbs, and fat does not make you fat. I can’t stress that enough. The whole ‘eating low fat’ thing was a fad that started in the 80s and just needs to die off already. If you would like to look into this, read Gary Taubes book Why We Get Fat.

…How did that just turn into a rant?….I guess that’s what happens when you write in a ‘stream of consciousness’ fashion…anyway…

Ingredients:

For the waffles (makes 4-5 square slices in my waffle maker):

2 cups almond flour

3 eggs, whisked

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons melted butter, cooled, or your fat of choice

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2-1 teaspoon poppy seeds

1/2-1 teaspoon sesame seeds (sprinkle it and eyeball it. Doesn’t have to be exact. Same goes for poppy seeds)

1/2 cup heavy cream or coconut milk

salt and pepper to taste

For the reuben goodness:

.3-.5 lb corned beef, thinly sliced from the deli (get however much you want! you can always double this recipe!)

1/2-1 cup sauerkraut (again, as much as you want!)

Thousand island dressing

4-8 slices of swiss cheese

1/2-1 tablespoon butter

Directions:

1. Heat your waffle iron. In a large bowl, mix the almond flour, baking soda, garlic powder, s&p, and seeds. Then add the whisked eggs, heavy cream, and melted butter until well combined. Make sure your butter is cool so it won’t cook the eggs. Then spoonful the batter into you waffle iron and poof…Paleo sandwich bread.

2. When the waffles come out of the iron, set them on your plate(s), lay however many slices of swiss cheese you want on one side, so it will slightly start to melt over it.

3. In a large skillet, melt a tablespoon or 1/2 tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat. Add however much corned beef and sauerkraut you want for your sandwiches. You can keep them separate, but in the same skillet. Or mix it. Whatever you like. Heat it up, flipping/stirring, so the corned beef slices start to curl and get slightly browned.

4. Straight from the skillet, pile the corned beef and sauerkraut right on top of the swiss cheese so it melts even more. Top it with dressing and another waffle slice.

The man friend and I actually cooked this together last night. And when I’m in the kitchen with someone else, it usually doesn’t go over very well…Because I tend to hover. I catch myself nagging and saying things like “Are you sure you want to measure 6 tablespoons out with that 1/2 tablespoon measurement when there’s a tablespoon measuring spoon in this drawer?” and “Why are you stirring with that when you can stir with this?”…People just cook, measure, and chop things differently. I need to get over it, because I do really like his help in the kitchen and it’s a great way to bond. I have always found food/cooking to be very personal.

Something I have also noticed in the kitchen with the man friend is how many questions I get about (what I think is) cooking basics. I grew up with a caterer for a dad, so, I feel I know more than the average person my age in the kitchen. I feel extremely lucky. I also feel it’s very important for college students or anyone else with crazy busy schedules to know how to make easy, healthy, quick meals rather than sticking to making sandwiches and PPJ’s and microwavable meals all the time. This reminds me of listening to my friend and college classmate make jokes a few months ago about how her roommates didn’t know how to boil pasta or cut/slice vegetables and so she ended up cooking dinner most of the time. This is so wrong! Hilarious in many ways, but so wrong! And I must add, since this incredibly funny rant from my friend, her roommates have learned to cook pasta and cut basic vegetables.

So, I’m dedicating this recipe adaptation (adapted from Brittany Angell) to those college students, and for anyone who works extremely crazy hours like my man friend. This recipe is extremely simple, quick, has very few ingredients, requires only three different pans (only two you have to clean if you use foil), and is very low in carbs.

Be healthy 🙂

Ingredients:

Spaghetti squash, one big one or two small ones ( or substitute with zucchini noodles or sweet potato noodles, spiralized)

1 1/2 cup heavy cream or coconut milk

8 teaspoons of starch (I used arrowroot powder. You can use tapioca starch, or if you’re not paleo, then use flour or potato starch)

2. Line a cookie sheet with foil. Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Lay face down on the foiled cookie sheet and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes (depending on the size of the squash) or until the skin is easily dented. I usually test it by using the handle of a knife to poke the sides. Once the squash is done, flip them over to let cool.

3. While the squash is cooking, gather the chili powder, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, salt & pepper to taste, starch, and cream, and buffalo/hot sauce in a sauce pan. Whisk on medium heat continuously until well combined and heated through. Set aside.

4. Add the chicken to a skillet with 2-3 tablespoons of butter, minced garlic (optional), salt and pepper. Cook on medium-high heat, stirring a little here and there, until done. Set aside.

5. Thread the cooled spaghetti squash with a fork into a large bowl. Add the cooked chicken and sauce and mix together well. Taste to see if you want to add more buffalo sauce.

6. Using the same skillet you cooked the chicken in, turn it on medium high/high heat and add the last 2-3 tablespoons of butter or your fat of choice. Quickly add some of the spaghetti squash and chicken mixture into the skillet. Just add enough to cover the bottom of the skillet. Stir/flip continuously and fry it until it’s thick and glossy looking. Then toss it in a serving bowl and enjoy! or fry up the rest and organize it into ziploc containers for leftovers the next day!

Some people who follow the Paleo diet include dairy into their diet. I try not to, but I can’t resist that cheesy goodness you see up there. Try to get the best quality cheeses you can afford for this recipe. I threw a little shit fit when I discovered Weis brand shredded cheeses include corn starch and potato starch (So deceitful, I can’t believe I didn’t read the label before I bought it!). This is almost as misleading as IHOP putting pancake batter in their omelets. The Weis cheese is still gluten free, but adds extra carbs I don’t need. Sargento is a pretty good brand. When I have a little extra time though, I like to shred my own cheese. I like the texture and it tastes better. You will notice a difference.

So, anyway, this recipe started as Closet Cooking’s Hot Spinach and Artichoke dip. When I made it the first time I thought it wasn’t a good dip consistency, not runny enough. Still tasted great though. The man friend and I devoured a pie dish full of this, dipping broccoli florets into it and that turned into a meal. While we were eating, I was thinking of how good this would taste on top of chicken or with chicken bites throughout it. After testing it out last night, turns out, it is amazing! And super easy! You could even make this version in your crock pot if you wanted to. Anyway, try this recipe out and let me know if you have any questions!

Ingredients:

.5-1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-1.5 inch cubes. I used one chicken breast the length of my hand for the one pictured here.

1 10 oz pack of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained. Squeeze all the water out of it.

1 14 oz can of artichoke hearts, quartered and roughly chopped

Half of a small onion, finely diced

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

1 clove of garlic, grated

2-3 tablespoons unsalted butter, or whatever fat you like to cook with. Bacon fat would be interesting.

1. Melt a tablespoon of butter on medium heat in a skillet. Add diced onions, minced garlic, artichokes, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until onions are translucent. About 5 minutes. Remove from pan and add to a large bowl to cool off.

2. Melt another tablespoon of butter in the same skillet you used for the artichoke mixture. Add the diced chicken with salt and pepper and italian seasoning. Cook just until it’s slightly under done. If there is any juice in the pan, drain just a little bit. This chicken is going to cook again in the oven. Add this slightly under done chicken to the bowl with the artichoke mixture to cool off.

4. Mix everything together with your hands or a spatula…whatever… you just want to make sure the chopped spinach is evenly throughout the mixture. Hands work the best.

5. Poor the mixture evenly into your pie dish and bake it for 20 minutes.

6. When the 20 minutes are up, take it out of the oven and top with extra parmesan and mozzarella cheese (as much cheese as you want. I say the more cheese on top the better!). Put it back in the oven on broil until the cheese is golden brown on top. If you have a broiler like mine, it happens very quickly. So keep an eye on it. After that you’re done! Enjoy!

I decided that in between recipes I will post a paleo-ish product I love. These will be products I usually have in my kitchen or I love as an occasional, guilt-free treat. Like the one I’m posting now is an example of one of those guilt-free paleo-ish treats. Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut Butter. It’s like a guilt-free version of Nutella, except with a grainy texture and a little more salt added to it…and way better for you, as in, having less sugar per serving, and no artificial flavors.

This is a great logo too. Fun and playful. Makes me feel better about what I’m eating. Not guilty.

As for the ingredients…Nothing there you can’t pronounce. Sugar is not the first ingredient. It’s not sweetened with refined sugar and doesn’t contain gluten or dairy either 🙂 I love this stuff! Pure chocolatey goodness.

Okay, I have to admit….The only thing I don’t like about this stuff is that it’s $8-9 for a 16 oz jar at Mom’s Organic Market and even more on Amazon. But when I purchase it I have to consider, I won’t be eating this every day and buying this every time I go to the store, because it’s a treat. It’s also 12 carbs/2 tablespoons so, when I do indulge, I’m scooping some on a spoon and that’s probably it for the day. And even if I have more than one serving, it’s not bad for me! Google the benefits of almonds and keeping nuts in your regular diet too. Not bad at all. They also sell Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut Butter in 1-2 serving packets at Mom’s Organic Market and Roots Market in Olney, MD. They could possibly sell it at Whole Foods too, but it probably costs $500 a jar or packet….If you don’t understand that joke, you need to read this.

Everything in moderation 🙂 I’ll leave you with a few words Steve’s PaleoGoods posted on Instagram yesterday about what the Paleo diet is all about. They will get their own post here as well some time soon. They’re awesome people with awesome healthy and quality products. Check them out.

My apologies for not posting in a few days. Had some kitchen disasters/Superbowl recipes crisis. I planned on making spinach and artichoke dip, wings, cheesecake mousse stuffed strawberries, and brownies. Brownies were an epic fail (one didn’t cook all the way through in time, and the other wasn’t sweet enough), didn’t have time to make the dip, and the wings weren’t spicy enough. However, the cheesecake mousse stuffed strawberries worked out well 🙂 They were a hit with the family and I will definitely be posting that recipe soon.

Note to self – do not experiment with new recipes 3 hours before the super bowl.

This recipe however, I’m well acquainted with. It’s from the blog The Iron You. Check it out. Good, healthy, Paleo recipes. Their recipes are more strict with the Paleo diet than the recipes I post.

I should also add, if you haven’t been to a Nandos yet, go. Good prices, the peri peri chicken cesar salad is delicious and their tasty sangria is half off before 6. Oh, and get the french fries because their dip is really good too.

2. In a shallow sealable container or in a large Ziplock bag, combine chicken chunks and marinade.
Cover or seal and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. The time you allow for marination makes a significant difference in this recipe. I marinate mine for 3-8 hours. Overnight would be best if you’re able to do that.

3. Remove the chicken from the marinade and skewer onto bamboo sticks that have been soaked in water for 5 minutes. I try to stick some of the onion slices on there too.

4. Heat a grill or a grill pan to medium heat. If you’re using an outdoor grill lightly oil the grill grates. I personally used a baking sheet, foiled it, then put a greased wire rack on top. Broiled on high 10-12 minutes, on the middle oven rack ( time depending on how small you cubed the chicken) turning them half way through.

5. Cook the chicken kebabs, until golden brown and cooked through, about 10 minutes turning regularly, until juices run clear.

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I'm an artist/designer. And a cook. I guess. I love sharing my recipes with others and discovering new recipes. I try to stick to a Paleo diet as much as I can (I call it the Paleo-ish diet)...I say whatever a lot...aaand thanks for stopping by and please let me know if you try any of my recipes and how they turn out!